Soundbar guides
What the specs in the comparison table mean, explained from manufacturer and standards documentation.
- Same-brand TV and soundbar features: Q-Symphony, WOW Orchestra, BRAVIA Sync and more
What Samsung Q-Symphony, LG WOW Orchestra, Sony BRAVIA Sync, TCL, Roku TV Ready and VIZIO QuickFit do, which TVs they need, and how to find those bars.
- Wall-mounting a soundbar: what to check
What to check before you wall-mount a soundbar: bracket in the box or sold separately, wall and screws, cables, distance to the TV, and the IR sensor.
- Expandable soundbar systems: adding rears and subs later
Which soundbars take extra rear speakers or a subwoofer later, what Sonos, Bose and Samsung list as compatible, and how to filter the table for it.
- Room correction: what it does and which systems have it
What soundbar room correction does, how Sonos Trueplay, Bose ADAPTiQ, Sennheiser AMBEO calibration and Samsung SpaceFit work, and which models list it.
- Wi-Fi streaming on soundbars: AirPlay, Chromecast, Spotify Connect
How AirPlay, Chromecast (Google Cast) and Spotify Connect stream music to a soundbar over Wi-Fi, how they differ from Bluetooth, and table filters.
- HDMI passthrough, 4K/120 and HDR10+/Dolby Vision
How HDMI passthrough on a soundbar works, and how to read its video specs: 4K60, 4K120 and 8K60, HDR10, HDR10+ and Dolby Vision, VRR and ALLM.
- Do you need a subwoofer? Wireless vs built-in
What the .1 in a speaker setup means, the three ways soundbars handle bass (built-in, wireless in the box, add-on) and where Dolby suggests placing a sub.
- Optical vs HDMI for soundbars
Optical and HDMI both carry TV sound to a soundbar. Which audio formats each connection carries, how remote control works, and why passthrough needs HDMI.
- Dolby Atmos vs DTS:X on soundbars
Dolby Atmos and DTS:X both place sound around and above you. How the two formats differ on soundbars: speaker layouts, decoding limits, HDMI and virtualizers.
- HDMI ARC vs eARC: what passes through
HDMI ARC and eARC both send TV sound to a soundbar over one cable. What eARC adds: high-bitrate formats such as Dolby TrueHD, DTS-HD Master Audio and DTS:X.
- Soundbar channel numbers explained (2.1, 5.1.2, 9.1.4...)
What the three numbers in a soundbar speaker setup such as 2.1, 5.1.2 or 9.1.4 count, with examples from Dolby speaker guides and the comparison table.